A Contractor's Nightmare
by Collateral-Damage666
Summary: BK-201 is a mysterious contractor, shrouded in secrecy and has never lost a battle as a Contractor.  Until now.  Together with Misaki and Mao, he finds himself in a strange world with people that are quite like him.  People with powers.
1. Chapter 1

**Well, here it is in all of its glory... well, just the first chapter, that is. I'm pretty sure this is the longest chapter I've ever written, so I'm kind of dead right now and I don't know when the next chapter will be done. But keep checking in because I hope it won't be that long. It will just depend on how lazy I am and how preoccupied I get when Assassin's Creed Revelations comes out.**

* * *

><p>The last body slumped to the ground and the masked man glanced up from his crouching position to make sure that no one else was coming to attack him. To his relief, no one was. However, he could hear the sound of police cars making their way towards his position. He got up, jogging down the dark alleyway to get away from the area as quickly as he could. He couldn't afford to be caught. Not now and not ever.<p>

By the time they arrived at the scene, there was only a trail of bodies and no one to blame it on. They knew the culprit, BK-201, but they had yet to actually see them or talk to them. They was a mysterious person that they knew nothing about, not even their gender or power. Misaki growled in frustration that her target had once again disappeared. She would catch BK-201 even if it was the last thing she ever did.

A knock sounded on his door and Li opened it, timidly sticking his head out. He found his landlady standing in front of his doorway and he relaxed visibly in relief.

"Hello. May I help you?" He asked, keeping the door open just enough so he could get a shoulder out.

"Yes, I need you to fix my TV again."

"I told you before, I'm not a repairman. Why don't you have an actual repairman do that job?"

"Because they're slow and cost money," she whined, squinting up at him with her hands clasped behind her back. He looked down at her before letting out a small sigh and exciting his room. She grinned in victory and followed her down to her apartment on the ground floor. Sliding the door open, she pointed at the TV, which had static running all over it. He glanced to the side at her husband, who was outside tending to his bonsai plants. He crouched down and began to smack the TV on the side.

"You're doing that again?" She ridiculed and then yelled at her husband, "You're in the way again, you old fart! Get out of the way of the good reception before I make you!" The old man awkwardly shuffled to the side a little, not sure where to go exactly.

"Um... I don't think that's the problem," Li tried to tell her, but she seemed intent on not listening to him. He went back to smacking the TV, as if it would actually do something. He knew it wouldn't but he decided to keep doing it to put up a show for the landlady, hoping she would just give up and let him leave. But it seemed like she would never let him leave. She would stare at him and yell at her husband to move out of the way every once in a while.

Finally, he sighed in defeat and placed his hand on the top of the TV and then turned to stare at her, "I don't think I'm going to get it working again like I did last time."

"Well you're no help, then. Why didn't you say so in the first place? It would have saved us a lot of time," He opened up his mouth to protest, but then thought better of it and closed it once more. Nothing he said would get through to this woman. He stood up and exited the apartment, bowing to them before he closed the door behind him.

He made his way back up the stairs to his own apartment, number 201, from which he had been hastily pulled from by his landlady as he was about to leave for the day. After slipping on his tennis shoes, he grabbed his bag from where he had stored it the night before and threw it onto his shoulder.

"Lets see..." he mumbled to no one in particular as he walked along the sidewalk, heading away from his department building, "I need to go check to see if anything new has come in and, afterwards, buy some more food from the grocery store." He wandered the streets in a seemingly crazed fashion, like a lost tourist. When, in reality, he knew exactly where he was going, but chose not to take a straight path to his destinations for reasons unknown.

He finally reached his destination, a cigarette store. He approached the window and set down some money. A slender, pale hand reached up and took it, giving him an small box in return. He took it and, without a word, left the store. The person inside the store settled back down, staring into nothing.

It was a girl with silver hair pulled back into a bushy ponytail. She wore a purple dress and her hands were tightly clasped in her lap. Her feet were bare and dipped into a metal bucket filled with water. The smooth surface would be disturbed every once in a while with a slight movement form her, sending ripples over the surface of the clear water. She sat, staring at the wall of the store, her eyes devoid of life as though she felt nothing of the world in which she resided.

Li pocketed the box he had gotten from the girl and made his way to his usual grocery store. He avoided the chatty workers and quickly gathered the food that he needed, placing it into a hand basket. He was through shopping in a matter of minutes and was out of the store in only a few more after that. He nearly breathed a sigh of relief as he made his way back to his apartment, only minutes away from locking himself back into his place, back into solitude for the next few hours.

Unfortunately for him, it was as if something in the universe wanted him to interact with others that day. As he rounded the corner to his apartment, he saw a woman standing outside of the apartment buildings, staring up at them and then back down at the phone she held in her hand. He twisted back onto the street he had just come from pressing against the concrete wall. Peeking around the corner, he saw that the woman was still there, but still distracted.

With quick movements, he turned the corner and dashed down the sidewalk, turning into the alleyway that ran along the side of the apartments. The women glanced up, sensing the movement and adjusted her glasses to stare down the sidewalk, but saw nothing. She shrugged it off and finally walked into the apartment's land, towards the landlady's building.

Li knew that if he went quickly, he might be able to slip past her and get up to his apartment in time. However, he also knew he couldn't take that risk. He recognized that woman and she wasn't really someone he wanted to talk to at the moment. He glanced up at the side of the apartment building, singling out the window that belonged to his.

He shoved his plastic bag of groceries into his shoulder bag and quickly began to climb his way to his apartment, jumping from metal railing to another, making his way to the second floor. He reached his window and swung his leg over the metal railing before pushing the window open. It slid open soundlessly, thanks to the many times he had oiled it just for a purpose like this.

He slipped in and closed it quietly behind him. He placed the bag of food in the fridge and then sat down in a corner where they couldn't see him from the door. He heard the woman and the landlady making their way slowly from door to door, knocking on it and asking questions to the residents within when the answered her call.

Finally, they reached his door. She knocked on it, but Li made to no move to answer it. Instead, he repositioned himself into a more comfortable position, his eyes never leaving the door. On the other side of it was that woman, his enemy. He had already talked to her a few times and had managed to act like a normal person but his smiling mask couldn't last forever. Eventually it would shatter like an eggshell.

He heard his landlady finally mutter something about how she thought she had seen him leave earlier that day and the woman's shadow finally stopped darkening his doorway. He got up from his sitting place and peeked out of the window to make sure she was actually leaving.

Eventually he saw her blue car drive away and he settled back down and started his preparation for an early dinner. He cut all the ingredients first and then cooked it into a massive bowl of fried rice. After he was done, he glanced at it, hoping it was enough for his enormous appetite.

He placed it on his table and retrieved the box he got from the girl at the cigarette store earlier that day. Sitting down, he opened it and let a slip of paper slide out of it, landing on the table, glancing quickly at the writing scribbled onto the parchment. He would be busy tonight so now was the time to eat. He dug in, shoveling the rice into his food with his plastic chopsticks.0

BK-201 slinked through the back alleyways, shrouded by darkness and stealing from shadow to shadow. He was on high alert that night, turning towards every sound and movement, weapons at the ready to slash at any attacker's throats if he was ever ambushed by a fellow contractor or a member of Division Four of Foreign Affairs, the group that specialized in following and capturing his kind.

Until now, he had never been seen by them, he had made sure of that. They were still clueless as to who he was and what he could do. He ran past another alleyway that led out onto a lighted, busy street and he could hear the laughter of people as he rushed past the pathway towards life. However, he left it far behind, replacing life with death.

Overhead the faux stars shined softly down on him and the giant manmade wall built around the city seemed to loom over the buildings, like a foreboding essence looking down upon them. At last, he reached his destination, an abandoned warehouse. Or not so abandoned, according to the note he had gotten that afternoon.

Apparently a particularly strong Contractor was holed up inside of the building, slightly injured from a previous battle, but still dangerous to face. He needed to strike from the darkness while he least expected it, to end his life from the shadows. It was what he did best, after all, as The Black Reaper.

A sound of a small bell sounded from his right and he glanced over in that direction, looking at the cat that was the source of the sound. It wore a red collar with a bell on it and its eyes were a starling purple. He peered back at the warehouse and reached up with his right hand, making sure that his mask was firmly in place before he made his move, slipping into the shadows of the building to bring about its inhabitant's fall.

Like a shadow himself, he slipped through an open window at the top of the building, traveling through the rafters of the warehouse, keeping an eye out for his opponent. Finally he saw him lying behind a wooden crate, treating his wound tenderly. Strips of his shirt were wrapped around his arm as a makeshift bandage, but the blood was soaking through them. BK-201 deduced that he would die either of blood loss or of an infection soon. But not soon enough for him.

Since his target's attention was focused elsewhere he decided that now was the time to attack and he had to do it quickly before the man noticed his presence. He pulled out one of his customary blades, a pronged knife, and sent it flying towards the man. Either he sensed it coming or something gave BK-201 away because the man dived to the side and the blade clattered uselessly to the ground.

The man's head swung upwards, searching for his attacker before finally spotting him, crouched in the rafters, his hand searching underneath his trench coat, his fingers curling around the hilt of another blade. The man picked up the discarded blade and, using his good arm, sent it flying towards BK-201.

He sent out a wire, wrapping it around a nearby rafter and jumped off, swinging away from the attack. He let go of the wire dropping down behind some other wooden crates, rolling to minimize the impact. He heightened all his senses, waiting for his opponent to pull forward his next attack. It happened sooner than he expected and he could feel the man activate his Contractor abilities. BK-201 stiffened and quickly ran from his hiding place, keeping his head low.

The crate he had been hiding in moments before was ripped off the floor as if it weighed nothing and flew into a massive void forming in the air. It reminded BK-201 of a black hole, something that sucking in everything in its path. Not even light could escape its greedy hands. However, nothing else was sucked into the vortex, meaning the man had complete control over what was targeted.

BK-201, flipped over the crates, turning in the air and throwing another knife before he landed. He immediately kept moving he couldn't afford to keep still against this Contractor or he might meet the same fate as the earlier crate, whatever that fate was.

Already he could hear sirens in the distance heading towards them. Division Four was on the move, having seen that the other Contractor's star was active. He cursed silently under his breath. He didn't have time to dodge both the Contractors and the police. He had to take out this man and he had to do it now.

Unfortunately, the Contractor's powers made it hard for BK-201 to come close to the man to use his own powers on him. It felt like a game of cat and mouse. Everything was being sucked into the vortex and soon there would be nothing left in the warehouse besides them and their soon-to-be uninvited visitors. He twisted and turned, advancing inch-by-inch, painfully coming closer to his goal, but never quite reaching it.

He even tried a jump attack a few times, however, upon feeling the pull of the Contractors power on him, would twist and jump away, maintaining his distance once more. It felt like a dance, one in which death snickered at the end of it, waiting for whichever prey would fall into its grasp first. Death wasn't meticulous; it took whatever it could.

The sirens were outside the warehouse now and BK-201 was about ready to leave this place and leave the man to deal with the police on his own. However, BK-201 wasn't like that. He wasn't like other Contractors, ruthless, mean, only looking out for himself. He may not have liked the police, but they were just doing their job, just like him and he didn't want any of them dying for something he could have put a stop to.

The man took BK-201's minor of confusion to his advantage, focusing his powers on the masked figure. He feet slid out from under him as he found himself being swept up, into the sweeping winds. Luckily, his reflexes took over for him and he flung another wire out, attaching it to a metal pole near the entrance. He turned on the motor on his belt and it greedily began sucking in the wire, causing him to fly away from the vortex and back to safety. That had been close, perhaps a little too close for comfort.

He jumped back up into the rafters and dove shoulder first through the window, breaking the glass and showering the startled police outside with shards. He landed next to them, rolling onto his knees and immediately getting up, turning to stare at the warehouse. The metal creaked as it began to lean inwards. The man was using his abilities on the entire warehouse now, sucking it into the dark depths of his power.

The police, however, remained ignorant to this fact and pointed all of their firearms at the mysterious masked man that had just appeared in front of them. To Misaki it was as if she had found a chest full of gold when this man landed in front of her, like a wrapped present including a bow. She took a step towards him, her Smith & Wesson 908S aimed at his chest. It wouldn't do anything to him, of course, if she ever decided to pull the trigger. His bulletproof coat would make sure of that. Therefore, instead, he kept his focus on the leaning warehouse.

He put his hands up, palms facing forwards towards the police and they took it as a sign of surrender. Misaki took another step towards him, thinking he wouldn't make a move. Suddenly he curled his hands into the shape of guns, keeping his thumb, index finger, and middle finger straight. He twisted his hand down, still keeping them above his head, and pointed them at the building. She turned slightly to look at the warehouse and finally noted that it was leaning it. Her focus was not caught between the man she had wanted to catch for years and the building that was currently falling into itself.

Finally the metal wrenched free and a horrible noise groaned out over them. The metal crunched, collapsing in on itself, becoming smaller and smaller, crumpling as if it was just paper, in order to fit through the vortex floating over them man. As if a soundless order had been given out the police began to open fire on the man, but to no avail. All of their bullets just warped harmlessly into the vortex to where ever the other side lay.

Misaki reloaded and glanced back at BK-201, who, to her surprise, had made no move to get away. Instead, he was standing there, motionless. However, she could tell that his mind was whirling, trying to think of a solution. A solution, she realized, involved only one fatality: the man standing in front of them.

Suddenly there seemed to be a change in the wind. They all felt it. The vortex was switching, pushing outwards rather than pulling in. Like a shockwave, it flooded the area, pushing them flying backwards. BK-201 dug his toes into the pavement, leaning forward so his fingertips brushed against the ground a few feet, not being knocked over like the others.

Misaki flew towards him and he outstretched his arms, catching her with his chest. She smacked into him and the air whooshed out of his lungs with the impact. He leaned over her as she lay against his chest, his arm wrapped almost protectively around her shoulders. For a second their eyes met but then he returned his gaze back to the enemy in front of him.

"Nice catch," he grunted, the first thing he had said the whole fight. BK-201 gave him no reply, living up to his quiet nature. He set Misaki down and stood in front of her, retrieving another blade from his belt. This was his last one and he had to use it wisely, he had to think of some kind of plan in order to get close enough to the man to kill him and... he had nothing. He would just have to wing it and hope it turned out all right.

Without a second thought, he raced forward, blade at the ready. The man sent out a few more shock waves of air and The Black Reaper jumped and twisted out of the way, coming closer and closer to him, closer than he had ever gotten before. He swung the blade but the man stepped out of the way, but he left his bad arm wide open in the process.

BK-201 turned the knife in his hand so the hilt was pointed downward and brought it down, smashing it into the would that was already there. The man let out a cry of pain and stumbled backwards from the blow. Twisting the blade again, he cut through the man's arm, then swung it, slicing though his chest again and again as they were caught once more in a kind of dance, but this time BK-201 seemed to be the one with the upper hand.

He continued to hack away at the man's chest until the white of bone began to peek through. He twisted the blade once more, aiming towards the heart. The man suddenly got a crazed look to his eye and let out a mangled scream. A quick blast of air sent the masked man tumbling backwards, the blade flying out of his hand and off into the darkness.

The Black Reaper leapt to his feet, but not in time. The winds shifted once more and he felt his feet fly out from under him. He had nothing to wrap a wire around this time. He was just floating in the air. Reaching out, he tried to scrap his hands along the cement below him, trying to get ahold of a lip in the ground, but it was beyond him. He rose higher up and was sent hurtling towards the giant void.

Someone yelled his name, his real one, and he twisted in the air to see who had uttered it. He saw the speaker running towards them. It was the cat from early, the one with the violet eyes. Mao. He was running as fast as he could, trying to get closer, but what could he do when he was just in the body of a harmless looking cat? Nothing.

"Get back, Mao!" BK-201 shouted, but he kept coming, eventually being swept off his paws himself. He was sent hurtling towards the masked man at high speeds due to his lightweight and he grabbed Mao, pulling him towards his chest and holding him there securely. He finally understood why he had kept coming even after he told him to leave. If he was going somewhere, then he wanted to come as well. It was almost childish, really.

Misaki raced forward, firing off her gun rapidly at the Contractor, but never managing to hit her mark. Enraged, the man swept her off her feet as well. One of the police officers let out a cry of shock and raced forward to grab onto her, but she was already swept away. The last thing BK-201 saw was the policeman crying out, reaching towards his captain and Misaki reaching out, hoping for his hand would reach hers, but it never did.

They were like mice caught in a trap, not knowing what to do or where to go, they could only go with the had going for them. He lunged forward, resisting the pull of the void for a split second and grabbed Misaki's other outstretched hand for some pseudo comfort just before they were swept into the abyss. Whether the fake reassurance was for him or her, he could not tell. Blackness engulfed him and every sound stopped. He found himself floating in complete darkness and eventually that overcame him, too, and he slipped into unconsciousness.

Misaki remain conscious for a few more seconds than he did, but she couldn't see anything. They only thing she could feel in this emptiness was his hand around hers. She squeezed his hand in fear, feeling bad as she did so. She had been chasing this man for ages, the man she swore she would find due to her suspicions about him. But now he was her only source of support. Finally, she felt the claws of sleep pull her under as well and she had no choice but to bow down to its whims.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading this, guys! I hope you enjoyed it. :D<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**Whooo! Out the day after I post a new chapter of my fanfic A Ninja Amongst Meisters! Something must be wrong with the world... Now excuse me while I go hibernate in a cave.**

* * *

><p>The masked man regained consciousness first, letting out a small cry as he awoke back in reality. He blinked at the sudden brightness that pierced his eyes and struggled to sit up, only to gasp in pain as sharp spasms darted through every part of his body. He lay back down, succumbing to his body's whims. He moved his hands, testing them, only to realize he was still holding onto both of the people that had come with him, and tightly, too. He loosened his grip on the two and tilted his head to look at Mao on his chest. His legs were splayed out, but he looked fine, as if he was just taking a small catnap. Even his tail twitched happily every once in a while, as if he was lost in the lands of a dream.<p>

Next, he glanced at the policewoman, Misaki, who was lying besides him. Her hand, that wasn't holding onto him, was crossed over her chest, still gripping tightly to her gun, as through it was a part of her, and she had been afraid of losing it to the darkness. She probably only a few rounds still in the clip and perhaps a few extra cartridges clipped to her belt. It was probably best that he left before she woke up and decided to point the gun at him once more. He tried to move once more and ignored the pain when it shot through his body. Twisting his hand gently out of her grip, he stood up, repositioning Mao in his grip, holding him in two arms.

Now that he was standing up, he surveyed his surroundings, which was just jagged rocks reaching up to the sky. The sun hung over the land, like a giant eye, heating up the air and creating mirages in the distance. He squinted; sweat already forming due to his dark clothes and beginning to collect under his mask. He glanced back at the Misaki, who looked like she wasn't going to wake up anytime soon. Feeling the heat beat down upon him, he took pity on her and lightly set Mao down and walked back over to her side. Sliding his arms under her neck and knees, he lifted her up and carried her to an outcropping of rock, placing her underneath it in the shade. He stared down at her and then finally turned away, picking up Mao once more and walking away, hoping his guilt didn't make him return to her.

An hour of walking had gone by and he still did not know exactly where he was. The land around him was unfamiliar in everyway. If anything, he wasn't in Tokyo anymore, not even in the area outside of it. The air was too clean for that and the land seemed to be healthy. Mao stirred suddenly in his arm, his ears perking up, and his tail whipping about in a frenzied manner. He squirmed and The Black Reaper loosened his grip on the cat so he could jump out of his arms. Mao landed on the ground and twisted around to stare up at him.

"Oh, it's just you," he said in relief before stretching, his front legs extended in front of him and then shook out his fur, the bell on his collar shaking loudly, "Where exactly are we?"

He removed his mask before shrugging his shoulder in reply. Putting the mask away in one of the pouches around his belt, he started walking away, leaving behind Mao, who complained loudly, bounding after him. He shrugged off his coat and folded it neatly into a small square before tucking it into his back pocket for safekeeping. Immediately, he felt much better, but the sun continued to beat on him all the more. Mao caught up with him, his tiny legs churning in order to keep up with the masked man and whispered complaints escaping out of his whiskered mouth.

"Where exactly are we going?" Mao complained, loudly this time, hoping on top of a small rock and lying down to bask in the sun, his limbs stretched out.

He didn't reply, but instead glanced up the slope next to them, mumbling to himself, "I think I heard a cow just now."

"Hey, are you just saying that so you can ignore my question?" Mao yelled after BK-201 as he scrambled up the side of the rock wall before sighing in defeat and flopping back on the rock. He gave up worrying and contenting himself to lounge in the sun, forgetting all about the man. Meanwhile The Black Reaper continued to crawl up the slope, pulling himself up to the top. He got to his feet at the very top of the wall, walked to the edge of the outcrop and stared down at the ground in front of him. A field of grass spread out in front of him, lazy cows dotting the pasture, their tails whipping the air and the flies that buzzed around them. Near the buildings, he could see people moving about, hard at work moving the bales of hay and other miscellaneous jobs.

"I was right, Mao, I did hear a cow!" He yelled back down at the cat, who just swished his tail to show that he had heard, "There are people too." Instantly the cat leapt to his feet and raced up the steep slope, bounding from boulder to boulder to join the masked man. He over looked the field in front of him, his eyes watching the scenery in front of him.

"Well? Should we go down there?"

"Why not? They just look harmless," The Black Reaper began leaping down the other side of the slope and Mao jumped onto his shoulders, his legs moving to keep up with the man's movements, "Just don't talk," he added to the cat, whose ears swiveled backwards in annoyance.

"I'm not stupid. I'm well aware that it's not normal of cats to usually talk. I'm not going to walk up to them and have a nice little chat with the locals."

The masked man made no move to reply to the cat's snarky and comment but instead focused on where he was putting his feet, well aware that if he placed his foot in the wrong place they would both tumble down the rest of the slope. The masked man would be able to get out of that predicament quite easily, given the fact that he had hands. Mao, on the other hand, wouldn't be so lucky, since he was in the body of a cat at the moment. The Black Reaper jumped off the last boulder and immediately Mao jumped back onto steadier ground. They made their way past the cows, which looked back at them their eyes wide and dumb, slowly chewing on the cud, their jaws working in circular motions. As they neared the people, a few spotted them and stared, probably seeing them as peculiar guests, a grown man dressed all in black, weapons at his waist, and his cat.

"Hello," someone said hesitantly, stepping out in front of them. It was a girl, her brown hair tied back with a giant bow and twisted into a ponytail that reached all the way down her back. Her outfit was comprised of mostly bright orange, a great contrast to the dull colored clothes everyone else around her was wearing, "Can we help you?"

The others muttered, quietly speculating as to who this man just might be. He heard words like "spy," "Alter user," and "HOLD" whispered amongst them.

"I can assure you that I am no spy or alter user and I don't know of this HOLD you people speak of," he addressed the citizens and they looked at him in alarm, "I could not help but overhear your quite audible whispering."

Immediately they all returned to their frantic whispering, many of their words still loud enough for the man's acute ears to pick up.

"Don't mind them. We're just not used to strangers out here. Usually when a stranger comes, they're from HOLY. Where are you from?"

"Tokyo," he muttered deciding to just tell them the truth and it seemed to have a giant impact on the people, as whispers spread through them like wildfire. He was pretty sure this was going to become the hottest gossip for whatever reason.

"The mainland? You're from the mainland?" The girl asked, excited, and ran up to him. He flinched backwards from her, still wary of this group. Mao took this moment to come forward, meowing loudly to get everyone's attention. For a few moments he would act like a cat to distract them. It worked like a charm for the girl at least and she immediately got down on her knees to scratch him behind his ears. He put on an act of purring, leaning into her hand. However, his eyes shot over to glare at The Black Reaper to let him really know how he felt. To be treated in this matter was degrading to him. He was a human in a cat's body, after all.

"Is it okay if I pick him up? It is a he, right?"

"Yes, you can pick Mao up. He quite enjoys being pet by people," another glare was shot his way from the cat, "So, go ahead and pick him up if you want to."

She did so and cradled Mao in her arms, scratching him between the ears. He let out a struggling purr at the touch, trying as hard as he could to stay in her arms. However, he was amused that The Black Reaper had played a sort of trick on him, something a normal contractor would never think of. Everyday he spent with this man only piqued his curiosity in him even more. He was like a puzzle spread out over a table, just begging to be put together, to be figured out. The only problem with this puzzle was that it had no border pieces and a few extra pieces had been thrown into the mix in order to throw off anymore you dared try to piece it all together. Before he realized what was happening, the girl was setting him back down; time had passed without him realizing it. Perhaps he did enjoy the attention and petting more than he dared admit to even himself. Immediately he attached himself back to the man's side, not wanting anymore more attention brought on himself.

"You look tired. Have you been traveling long?" The girl addressed The Black Reaper again, looking up at him with giant eyes. He met her eyes and faked a smile to comfort her.

"No, not that long. Just a few hours at the most. To be honest I have no clue where we are, we're completely lost."

"Aw! The poor little kitty cat had to walk for miles on paw to here!" She squatted down and reached out pet Mao once more, but he pretended to take interest in a butterfly floating by and chased after it enthusiastically, leaping up into the air after it, purrs erupting from his throat. Even The Black Reaper almost couldn't tell whether he was faking it or not.

"Well, to be honest, I would start to carry him whenever he started to complain, so he didn't do much walking at all. He's quite a wimpy cat," Mao jerked to a stop and sent a glare at him once more, but he pretended not to notice but continued up his fake smile.

"You must be hungry, then," she stood back up, "Why don't you come back to my place and I can cook something up for you."

He held out of hand, palm facing her, "No, that's fine. We should keep moving anyways. We still have to figure out a way back to home."

"Oh, no, I must insist you eat something before you move on. It's only right for us to be hospitable to guests," she grabbed his arm and began tugging him away from the field despite his protests. She eventually released him once she knew that he was actually going to follow her, Mao in tow. The man's knives clinked against his thighs as he followed the girl up a hill. She seemed to live a distance from the rest of the town, out here in solitude.

"I don't live alone," she called over her shoulder, "If that's what you were wondering. Of course, he's always gone so I guess I could basically be considered living alone out here. He was still home this morning before I left, though. Maybe we'll be lucky and he won't have run off like usual."

Meanwhile, in the middle of the wasteland, Misaki finally stirred. She murmured in her sleep and then sat up, rubbing her eyes. Why was her bed so dang hard and uncomfortable? She blinked in shock as she realized where she was. Some sort of outcropped rock was over her, shading her from the sun. However, even then, she could feel the warmth of the sun pounding down on her. Her suit was clinging to her as she stood up, her back all wet from sweating in her sleep. She looked around, but there was no one else in sight. BK-201 had abandoned her, she realized in a flash of anger, but once she thought about it from his point of view she figured she would have done the same if she was in his position. After all, she had tried to capture or kill him on numerous occasions. That wasn't something you really wanted to stick around and wait for. At least he had left her with her gun, she decided, and slid it back into its holster. She set off in a random direction, hoping it would bring her so some sort of civilization.

They stopped outside an old two-story clinic under a large tree. Cracks covered the road in front of the building and a lone telephone line kept watch over the rundown building. The place didn't look well kept, but, then again, it didn't look like a place that really cared about curb appeal. It looked like a place that cared more about survival than anything else. It was something that he could greatly relate to. The girl opened the front door and peered in.

"Kazu-kun?" She called into the doorway, peering around.

"How many times have I told you to not call me that?" Came a voice from somewhere in the depths of the house and she turned to grin at the man.

"Oh, good. He's still here," she laughed and then entered into the house, "We have guests, Kazu-kun!"

"What do you mean we have guests?" A man questioned, coming around the corner, a frown on his face. The man had reddish brown hair parted on the left side of his head that flopped down around his face. His collared jacket only had one sleeve with a very interesting white design on the shoulder. It was cut short with a slanting hem, showing his midriff, which revealing a purple long sleeve shirt underneath. He shoved his hands into his pant pockets, his right hand wearing a fingerless glove that seemed padded, as though he was in fights a lot. Just looking at his expression as he glowered at the two unexpected, and probably unwelcome, guests could tell you that he wasn't much of a people person.

"Would you like a glass of water?" The girl addressed the man.

"Sure, if it's not a bother," he replied, trying to be as polite as he could as a guest in this household. She went around the corner, shutting the door behind her as she went. The man didn't even try to find a place to site down, but instead remained standing in the middle of the room in a rigid posture as the two stared at each other. Mao sat down on the ground and flicked at his ear with a hind paw, pretending he had a scratch to get rid of.

"So, Kazu-kun, right?" The man finally spoke, but the other man snapped at him.

"No. I don't like it when anyone calls me that, especially not a complete stranger like you. It's Kazuma."

"All right, Kazuma," He murmured, reaching down to pick up Mao. He held him up, his hands under his front legs, leaving his back legs dangling in the air, "What do you think about cats." Oh, no. He was backing up into his awkward phase that he took on every once in a while as an alias so the police wouldn't suspect him. Kazuma just looked at him as though a second head had just sprouted out of his shoulder and started speaking gibberish. Even Mao flicked his tail about in amusement, his ears swiveling.

"They're okay…" Kazuma finally replied, wearily, just in time for the girl to come back in with a glass of water and a small plate of food. She set it down on the table and Kazuma made his way towards the food, a smile on his face. She slapped his hand away as soon as it reached for it and he retreated with a frown on his face, his hand clasped to his chest as if she had actually injured it.

"Here you go…" she paused, "Oh, my I just realized I never got your name, sir. What is your name?"

"I never got your name, either," He pointed out, trying to stall the time so he could mull his names in his mind to decide on which would be best to tell her. Of course, Misaki was in this world as well, so he would have to go with his alias's name so no confusion was created if he ever ran into her. It would probably be a bad idea to use his codename in this world. But, then again, what was the chance of them running into each other again? While wearing his mission outfit, he would feel more comfortable to be called his by his codename, not his alias.

"Oh, you're right! I never did tell you my name."

Kazuma looked over at her, "Seriously? You invited a stranger into our house when you didn't even know his name and he didn't even know yours? Also, what's with the cat? It's like some creepy add-on to him. Who holds a cat like that?"

He looked down at Mao, who he was still holding in his arms and Mao looked up at him, he tail still swishing, "Mao seems fine with me holding him like this," he noted and immediately Mao stopped seeming so content and began squirming in his grasp, trying to break free.

"Yes, he looks delighted," he retorted sarcastically before returning his gaze to the food that she had brought out.

"I'm Kanami. It's nice to meet you…" she held out her hand and paused to wait for his reply.

He held out his hand, grasping hers in his and shaking it, "It's nice to meet you, Kanami," he glanced over at Kazuma, "and you, Kazuma," he didn't even look over to acknowledge his existence, "I'm Hei."

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you guys liked this chapter! Until next time, DFTBA! :D<strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**Lol, I kept promising this so many times and so long ago... :D Well, here it is finally. Hope you guys like it... even though I'm not sure about it. Oh, and the timeline keeps jumping around in this one.**

* * *

><p>In the end Kanami allowed Hei and Mao to stay the night, ignoring the protests from Kazuma. She apologized profusely for the lack of beds, but Hei continued to insist that the floor was fine. Finally she gave in and they all went to sleep even though Kazuma glared at the two of them for what seemed like an eternity before they all their separate ways for the night.<p>

At about midnight Hei woke up to a metallic noise. He shifted in his sleep wondering if he had actually heard it. It rang out again. He pushed himself to his knees and stayed in a crouch, all of his senses heightened. The sound of footsteps reached his ears and he stood up, moving quickly towards the door of his room. He moved quickly, silently like a shadow. Mao stayed behind, for his bell would have surely alerted whoever it was of their presence.

Hei slipped around a corner and peered though an open doorway, only to let out a relieved sigh. It was only Kazuma, though he seemed to be getting ready to leave.

"Going somewhere?"

Kazuma spun around, shocked at the sound of Hei's voice, "What? How long have you been there? Have you just been sitting there watching me? What kind of sick person does that?"

"Calm down," Hei groaned, "I've been standing here for only a few seconds. I heard noises and came to investigate the source. Be glad I didn't stick a knife in your back."  
>"Oh, thank you," Kazuma said sarcastically and shoved a loaf of bread into his bag. Hei tilted his head at the teenager's actions.<p>

"So are you going to tell me what you're doing or am I just going to have to assume you're running away?"

"I would never run away. I just have a job to go to," Kazuma answered softly.

"In the middle of the night?"

"My jobs come at odd times," he shouldered his bag and made his way to the door.

"Not even going to bother saying goodbye to Kanami-san?"

"She's used to it by now."

Hei said no more, but followed him towards the door. Kazuma slipped out and Hei followed suit. A male waiting outside with what looked like an ATV looked up at him in shock. Hei stared over the man and their ride, wondering just what Yin would think of him if he snuck off without her. He always did feel more comfortable and safe knowing that one of her observation spirits were likely to be nearby somewhere. With a jolt, he realized that he had technically snuck off without her, though minus the sneaking and more being pulled into a black hole.

"Who's the old man?" The other person asked.

"I don't know. Some stray Kanami decided to take in, probably out of pity," Kazuma replied for Hei. As if he heard his words, Mao decided that this would be the right time to slink out of the door and take his place at Hei's feet, his tail swishing around in the dirt and whiskers twitching as he stared at each of them in turn.

"Oh, he's like a cat lady… but he's a male…" the boy trailed off as he noted Hei's expression, a glare that seemed to tear into his soul like he was using a serrated knife, "Yelp, lets go, Kazuma, because your guest is killing me with his eyes."

He slid into the driver's side of the ATV, his eyes staring straight forward, refusing to look at Hei once more out of fear. Kazuma looked back at Hei and found himself on the receiving end of the glare now, but he only smiled.

"I like that look. It's better than that smile of yours. Just don't wear it around Kanami or it might scare you," He slid into the passenger seat, "Maybe you're an okay guy, Hei. I'll have to see what you can do when I get back."

The other teen turned on the ATV and they roared away, the tires spinning up dust behind them. Hei watched them leave, his eyes devoid of emotion and retreated back into the clinic, leaving the door open just long enough to let Mao slip in after him. Something about that boy bothered him, sent a weird sensation up his spine, and made a little warning sign go off in his head. There was something different about that boy, something sinister lying underneath, much like himself.

He looked out the window and stared up at the stars, which were pulsing in the sky. A moon hovered over the land, brightly looming over them. Those alone told him he was not home anymore, that he was in a different world altogether. That contractor's power had been to teleport others to different worlds. Without that power, Hei had no clue as to how he would be getting back home. Somehow that man needed to come over to this world, but he had no ways of putting that into motion, he could only hope that his teammates figured out the true power of the man and somehow do something about it.

But of course that wouldn't happen. They would have no idea where he was. For all the knew, he could have just been transported to another part of the world and had chosen to stay there, hiding in plain sight. Mao and Misaki were a different matter all together. Her police force was probably waiting for her return. If anything, he could put more hope into them in getting them back then he could in his own team. He shook his head and walked back to where he was sleeping to hopefully get a few more hours in before the sun rose and he would be on his way.

* * *

><p>The roar of the engine was loud as they road over the rocky landscape, bouncing over the rocks and dips. Kazuma was totally relaxed, his arms folded leisurely over his chest and a foot was propped up on the dashboard of the small vehicle. Next to him, Kunihiko had pulled his goggles down over his eyes to shield them from the onslaught of sand flying though the air. Kazuma had put on his orange tinted glasses to protect his eyes, but he would have probably been content to just squinting to keep the sand out of his eye if it would have kept the sand out of his eyes all the same.<p>

"So you have no idea who that man was?" Kunihiko yelled over the sound of the engine.

"No, I just know his name. Hei. Even then, that sounds like a lie. He was guarding himself from us, even though he thinks we're nothing but kids."

"Then shouldn't we go back? What if he's dangerous, a criminal running from the law or something? He could be a spy from HOLY or HOLD sent out to catch you."

"He didn't seem like the kind of person to hurt someone without reason, much unlike me, who would fight just for fun," he smiled.

Kunihiko's hands gripped tightly onto steering wheel as he realized what terror he was probably driving into at the moment. He tried not to let a sigh escape from him, like usual, but decided to chew on his bottom lip instead.

"What's the job you have for me today?" Kazuma asked, his smile still on his face, his hair blowing back in the wind.

"Seriously? I already told you what it was. How could you forget it so easily?"

"I often forget when it sounds boring or easy to me," he mumbled, his smile fading.

"Hideki's team is currently under attack by another group wanting to take over their turf. The leader is an alter user, remember?"

"Oh, yeah, that's right. So it's not my fault if a building or two explodes, okay? I'm fighting against another alter user and that means anything can happen."

"You're just looking for an excuse to beat someone up."

"Of course I am. I always am," he smiled wider once more, making Kunihiko look over at him.

"Now look here, if you hurt anyone-"

"Look out, you imbecile!"

He looked in front of them and swerved his car out of the way of the rock, only to send their vehicle flying through the air.

* * *

><p>Misaki felt like she had been walking for hours on end, her knees weak beneath her, and yet she had yet to find something that resembled a city. Every once in a while she would find a house, but no one was ever home. They were all out, doing their jobs in the fields, she suspected. But, finally, a city was set out in front of her, buildings stretching towards the sky. A giant wall surrounded the city and she wondered just how she was supposed to get inside. Maybe there was a door you just walked up to? She hoped they didn't want cash to get inside, because that was something she did not have on her at the moment.<p>

Her head felt faint as she stumbled onwards. Her shoes were killing her feet by now, like giant nails had been hammered into the soles of them, piercing her raw feet inside of them. She would have unbuttoned her suit a little more, but, if she did, she would be completely immodest and she would rather die being modest. Stubborn until the end. She readjusted her glasses and slumped against a rock. God, that sun was beating down hard on her almost like it wanted her to collapse. Almost as if that was exactly what it wanted, her knees gave out underneath her and she collapsed and slid down the rock, swallowed up in darkness.

She woke up with a start, realizing that the air was quite cool now. She glanced around and realized that she was in a room, lying in a comfortable bed with an immaculately soft blanket thrown over her. A low hum from the air conditioner was comforting. Mostly because it was cool, but also because it was like a normal noise from back home.

The door was thrown open and a man with outrageous orange hair barged in. A pair of pink shades were on his head.

"Oh, you're awake, little lady. I was starting to get worried about you, there. When I found you out side, I thought you might have been dead, but then I realized you had a heart beat, so I brought you inside the city using my car with incredible speeds and got you into a bed. I also had others care for you because you had a fever and seemed to be delusional the few times you woke up, but now you seem all right. You also had some vivid dreams, it seems you were mumbling someone's name in your sleep. Li. Do you know a Li? Are you perhaps in lo-"

"All right, stop!" She said as loudly as she could, her cheeks burning slightly. He had been talking so fast that she could hardly catch his words as they flew past her ears. She tried to sit up but he stepped forward quickly and pushed her back down into the bed.

"It's best that you relax right now. It's night, after all. A time meant for sleeping."

"You're not exactly sleeping, now are you?"

"Sleeping is for slow people. I'm fast, faster than life."

"Sure, whatever you say," she mumbled, retreating back into the covers.

"I'm so fast that sometimes-"

"I needs some sleep," she quickly said before he could begin his rambling once more.

"Ah, yes, of course. I shall leave now and leave you alone, Miss…"

"Kirihari Misaki."

"Well goodnight, Miss Karihara."

"Kiriha-" But he was already gone and she was left confused as to what had just happened. She settled back into the bed, curling up. She was just glad that she was still in her usual clothes, minus her shoes, which meant he hadn't undressed her to put her in some more uncomfortable clothes, like pajamas. Heck she was just glad to be able to rest after walking all that time in the hot sun. Damn that Contractor for just leaving her alone like that. Every time she thought about him, she couldn't help but frown and let a little angry noise escape from her throat. The very thought of him infuriated her. But, at the same time, she remembered how he had grabbed her hand back when they were being pulled in to give her what seemed to be some comfort. She didn't know if that was the reason he had grabbed her, but she could think of no other reason to do so.

She closed her eyes, nuzzling her head into the pillow, trying to find a place that was comfortable for her. Her body was having none of it, though, so she tried to roll over to find some other position. Finally, she found one, her knees nearly bent up to her chest, a position she hadn't taken since she was a small child. But now that familiar position from her childhood brought her comfort and she was lulled into the quiet lullaby that sleep was singing for her.

When she woke up next, she felt much better than she had the previous time. Her aches had all but vanished and her fever was gone. She stifled a yawn and swung her feet over the side of the bed, scrunching her toes up on the carpet. When she rose from the bed, it let out a creak, like a sigh of relief and immediately she began wondering if she was a little bit overweight, even after all that walking and no food the day before. She would have to eat healthy today that was for sure.

Someone knocked on the door politely, much unlike the man from earlier and Misaki called to let them know they could enter. Still, they opened the door hesitantly and poked their head in first before slipping in entirely. It was a girl with short blue hair with some sort of orange and white hair clip in it.

"Oh, good, you're awake," she said with a smile, brushing her hair back behind her ear as she thought of what to say next, "Cougar told me you were probably awake by now and to bring you down to the cafeteria to get some food. You're probably starving by now."

As if in agreement, Misaki's stomach let out a loud growl and she giggled nervously, "Just a bit."

After eating to her fill, of only healthy foods, of course, she leaned back and relaxed, letting her eyes wander over all the people in the room. They were all wearing the same basic uniform and seemed to all be part of some organization or other. She just hoped she wasn't in the midst of a cult, but the atmosphere gave off another feeling than that. Something more serious and sinister seem to hang in the air, like she was among a whole bunch of Contractors or something. Of course, now that she thought about it, that could very well be true. A shiver when up her spine at the thought.

She glanced down at her badly worn shoes and decided that she would have to get some new ones when she got back home. She sighed in disappointment. She had really liked these shoes, too. All around her she could hear different conversations and although she didn't really want to listen in, she couldn't help but overhear a few words here and there in different conversations, whether she meant to or not.

A few were discussing the mainland. Asia, maybe? But the more she heard from them, the more it sounded like they were just speaking of Japan. Since when was Japan considered the mainland? Her brow furrowed in confusion. Another conversation to her right was talking about some event, something like the appearance of Hell's Gate, yet different. The more and more she heard from those around her, the more confused she got. She got up to throw away her trash into the nearest trash bin.

As she did so, it finally all snapped together.

'I'm in another world,' her inner solemn voice said in her head, like some death sentence from a judge.

The noises around her seemed to dim and move away into the distance as she realized that she wasn't in her world. There was no comfort in this world that she knew of. Everything was different in some way, shape, or form. This wasn't her home, and that scared her more than anything else. Everything she knew was gone, somewhere else on the other side of that black hole the Contractor had made.

But, wait, BK-201 and that cat… they were here somewhere, too, right? She still had a little piece of home somewhere in this world, though she knew not where they were. She had constantly hunted down the masked man to kill him or capture him. That had been her job, her obsession, her passion. That man had been her life, the one thing she had always kept in front of her. And now he was her only familiar link back to her own world.

She couldn't stay here any longer in this city of shining metal and glass. She needed to head back out there to the dismal land and search for him. Once she found him, she wasn't sure what she would do, but at least she would have a little source of comfort, a little piece of home where she could reach it. Her knees felt weak beneath her and she placed her hands on the table in front of her to steady herself, trying to steady her breathing. This place was suffocating her. She had to get out of here, to escape. But, she had to find BK-201 most of all.

The voices came back to full volume and pulled back. She looked up, but no one had seemed to notice her momentary freak out. She backed away from the table, and pushed a strand of hair back behind her ear. Maybe if she walked away now, while they were preoccupied, they wouldn't notice her absence. Misaki glanced around at all the people around her and slowly began to walk backwards. So far so good. She turned and walked towards the exit with no one the wiser. Slipping out of the door, she felt somewhat like a ninja as she walked into the bright sunlight. Shielding her eyes from the sun, she began her journey to find the man she had been searching for for what seemed like forever. She just hoped that he would be easy to find for once.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please review!<strong>


	4. Hiatus

This story has been placed on permanent hiatus, as I have not been interested in animes for over a year now.

If you still want to continue following me for other fandoms such as Supernatural, Sherlock, etc. you can find me on AO3 under CollateralDamage666.


End file.
